WA sex criminals get tracked by satellite

The West Australian government will use satellite tracking technology to monitor dangerous sex offenders.

The WA State government has announced that it will devote $6 million to the pervert tracking initiative as part of the 2012-13 State Budget.

The GPS technology platform has yet to be procured and the state government will soon be issuing a technology tender.

Once deployed the sex offender will wear the device on either the ankle or wrist and his or her movements will be tracked by a monitoring unit installed at the Department of Corrective Services.

An alarm will be activated if the offender enters an area deemed an exclusion zone or tries to tamper with the device.

Corrective Services Minister Terry Redman said the only similar technology currently available to the Department of Corrective Services was radio frequency equipment, which monitored a small number of offenders on curfew requirements and home detention bail, but was not able to track their movements.

“GPS tracking will enable authorities to pinpoint the location of an offender at any given time and respond to any breaches,” he said.

The technology will be initially wired to 16 offenders who are currently subject to the Dangerous Sexual Offenders Act 2006.

Once implemented, GPS tracking will be reviewed to assess its effectiveness, and its potential expansion to monitor other high-risk offenders, including arsonists or terrorists. ®